Genesis 28-30

We know that Jacob, the schemer, does not deserve the blessing, but he gets it anyway. Before sending him off to Uncle Laban in search of a wife, Isaac conveys the blessing of Abraham, that his descendants would be multiplied and that they would possess the land. And on the way, in the dream of “Jacob’s Ladder”, the LORD Himself blesses Jacob, saying:

I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.

Genesis 28:13-15

This is now the fifth time that God has told Abraham, Isaac, and now Jacob that through them all the families (or nations) of the earth shall be blessed. (See also Gen. 12:2-3; 18:17-19; 22:16-18; 26:2-5.) Perhaps we should pay attention…

Genesis 25-27

If I were to sit down and make up stories of my family origins, I would make all the main characters excellent heroes — always honest and upstanding, good-hearted and courageous, faithful and strong. If I knew of any flaws, I would either leave them out entirely or make excuses for them. I would make my ancestors out to be practically perfect in every way. And it would be rubbish.

Fortunately for all of us, the Bible is far more honest, and that is one thing I love about it. The Bible just lays reality out there for all to see, warts and all — and there are a lot of warts. Today we see a few.

Before Jacob and Esau are born, Rebekah is given a prophecy:

Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples from within you shall be divided;
the one shall be stronger than the other,
the older shall serve the younger.

Genesis 25:23

Today we begin to see that prophecy playing out, and it is not pretty. It involves underhanded manipulation, scheming, conniving, and deception. We may eventually think of Jacob as “one of the good guys”, but he certainly does not behave honorably here. He cons Esau out of his birthright. Then at Rebekah’s prompting, he deceives Isaac into giving him the blessing, stealing it right out from under Esau.

Mind you, Esau is not particularly stellar, either. In selling his birthright for a bowl of soup, Esau reveals his shortsightedness and how little he cares for what really matters. And in marrying two local Hittite women, he dishonors his parents, disregarding the precedent that Abraham set in avoiding such unions.

Yet none of Esau’s behavior excuses Jacob. Jacob is unavoidably undeserving of any favor. Not from Isaac. Not from God. Yet Jacob — like Isaac before him — is the one through whom God’s promise is to be fulfilled.

If I were the Hebrew writing Genesis as the history of my great-great-great-grandpappy, that’s not the way I would tell it…

Genesis 24

Today we learn, in great detail, about how Rebekah comes to be Isaac’s wife. Abraham gives his right-hand man the task of finding Isaac a wife from his previous homeland, from among his kindred. Abraham adamantly charges him not to get a wife from among the Canaanite population (among whom they are sojourning) and also not to take Isaac back to the old country. Instead, the servant is to go fetch a cousin from far away and bring her back to be Isaac’s bride. The entire operation then becomes an undertaking of faith.

So why does Abraham give these particular directives? I think it is safe to say that he is primarily looking out for Isaac’s spiritual welfare. He does not want a Canaanite wife, because such would surely be a snare, pulling Isaac away from faith in the one true God. And he does not want Isaac to be drawn away from the land of his birth, thereby disregarding his promised inheritance, and reversing God’s command to dwell there.

Why Abraham wants Isaac’s wife to be drawn from his kindred (i.e., a cousin) is less clear to me. We know that returning to the same small gene pool is not a healthy practice (as the royal houses of Europe can surely attest!), so I can only assume that Abraham’s family as a whole has some semblance of faith in God, and that this is what Abraham wants to draw upon. It’s hard to tell, though, because as things play out, it is not entirely clear that Abraham’s family “back home” is particularly faithful…

In any case, at this point in Abraham’s life journey, it seems likely that Abraham is following the Lord’s direction. It is also clear that his servant does his best to likewise discern the Lord’s leading. May we do likewise.

Genesis 21-23

Isaac, the son that God promised to give to Abraham, arrives on the scene when Abraham is 100 years old and Sarah is 90. Both Abraham and Sarah laugh at the thought, and so, God instructs them to name him accordingly. (“Isaac” means “he laughs” or “laughter”.) This is the heir. This is the son through whom God promises to raise up countless offspring. This is the son whose descendants are to inherit the land.

And this is the son that God tells Abraham to sacrifice as a burnt offering.

Abraham obeys. The text here offers us no hint of hesitation on Abraham’s part, no arguing with the Lord, no questioning of the plan. Yet it is hard not to imagine the emotional turmoil Abraham faces as he leads Isaac up the mountain, laying the wood for the fire on Isaac’s shoulder. For Abraham, this is the ultimate test of his faith in the Lord, and he proves that faith through obedience, fully expecting to kill his precious son, yet declaring, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” (Gen. 22:8)

Abraham knows His God. He knows that God keeps His promises, and he knows that Isaac is that promised son through whom the other promises are to be fulfilled. He cannot anticipate how, but he knows that, somehow, Isaac will walk back down the mountain with him. (See Heb. 11:19.) And he knows all that by faith.

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Although we are walking through the Bible chronologically, let’s not miss the foreshadowing here of what happens 2,000 years later. Here Isaac carries the wood for the fire up the mountain. There Christ carries His own Cross up the hill of Calvary. Here Abraham offers up his beloved promised son. There God Himself offers up His own beloved promised Son to die for us. In both cases, the Lord provides the sacrifice.

Genesis 17-20

So, imagine the scene. Abraham comes out of his tent and tells everyone, “Gather around. I just finished speaking with the Lord. First of all, He gave me a new name. I’ll be going by ‘Abraham’ from now on, and please call my wife ‘Sarah’.”

Everybody says, “Well, congratulations! That’s pretty neat.”

Then Abraham, still laughing from the news that his 89-year-old wife will have a son, continues, “But guys, there’s something else. There’s this covenant, ya see?”

And all the men squirm and say, “Wait, what?! You’re kidding, right?”

The Bible is completely silent about how this 99-year-old man convinces everyone in his household to go along with this new sign of the covenant, but it has to rank as one of the greatest sales pitches — or sermons — of all time!

The most significant part of this conversation with God, though, is not the sign of the covenant but the son of the covenant: Isaac. God hears Abraham’s request to recognize Ishmael, and He promises to bless him, too, but God makes it clear that Isaac, the son of Sarah, is the son of the Promise. It is to be through Isaac that God’s covenant promises are to be fulfilled. (See Gen. 17:18-21.) Stay tuned.

Genesis 12-16

In Genesis 1-11 we raced through centuries of prehistory. We saw Creation, the Fall, the Flood, and the Tower of Babel. Now we suddenly shift into a lower gear and measure time in years (or perhaps decades) rather than centuries, focusing in on one man, Abram.

Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Genesis 12:1-3

One might say that all the rest of Scripture — indeed, all the rest of human history — simply unfolds what is contained in God’s promise here to Abram: in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

But that unfolding is not altogether obvious, neither for Abram, nor for us. Yet God’s promise is sure. He adds to it in Gen. 12:7, promising to give the land to Abram’s offspring, and then again in Gen. 13:14-17, God expands the promise further, declaring that Abram’s descendants will be “as the dust of the earth” for number. Yet Abram remains childless and so questions how this will be, and God tells him, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them. So shall your offspring be.” (Gen. 15:1-5) We then see that Abram believes the LORD and that his faith is counted to him as righteousness. (Gen. 15:6) The LORD confirms His promise with a covenant, “To your offspring I give this land…” (Gen. 15:18-21) Even so, though Abram believes, it is hard for him to see how it will all work out.

And so it goes with us. We may know God’s promises. And we may firmly believe in Him. But that does not mean that the way ahead is obvious or crystal clear. We may stumble. (I know I do.) We may grow impatient. (I know I do.) We may grow weary. (I know I do.) But God is faithful, and His promise to Abram remains sure: in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

Genesis 10-11

In a book titled “Genesis” we should not be surprised to find phrases like, “These are the generations of…” In fact, we’ve seen that phrase (or something very close to it) six times thus far (including today):

• Genesis 2:4 – The generations of the heavens and the earth
• Genesis 5:1 – The generations of Adam
• Genesis 6:9 – The generations of Noah
• Genesis 10:1 – The generations of the sons of Noah
• Genesis 11:10 – The generations of Shem
• Genesis 11:27 – The generations of Terah

These genealogies tell us where we came from and populate the landscape. They record the origins of whole people groups and nations, framing the context of the entire Biblical narrative that comes after. Although the human family tree obviously branches out in these genealogies (though somewhat severely pruned at the Flood!), note that each “node” listed above serves to narrow the scope down to the branches of particular interest. As we move through the Scriptures we will see further genealogies, focusing us closer in on the people of Israel, then the lineage of David.

It can be tempting to breeze past the names in our rush to get through our readings, but I would encourage us all not to do that, at least not every time. Some of these characters (or the nations that arise from them) figure significantly into Israel’s history, and these genealogies help us gain an understanding of who is who, where they live, and how they relate to one another. These genealogies also root us to reality. These are real people living real lives in real places.

But that is not all. In the end these genealogies point us to the One Who came to save us, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Genesis 7-9

Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your offspring after you, and with every living creature that is with you, … that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

Genesis 9:8-11

Here God makes an unconditional promise never to repeat destroying the entire world by a flood. And sure enough He never has. God is faithful, and He keeps His promises.

The Lord makes this promise in the form of a covenant. We will come across multiple covenants in our journey through the Scriptures, so it is important to know what a covenant is, but I’m not going to attempt to cover the topic myself here. Instead, you’ll be better off checking out the following:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Covenant_(biblical)
• https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-covenants.html
• https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/covenant/

The main thing to note here, though, is that God treats covenants very seriously. In this “Noahic Covenant”, God has made a solemn vow never again to destroy the earth by a flood. That does not mean that there won’t be any flooding at all. (That is patently absurd.) Nor does it mean that the earth will not ultimately pass away or that there will be no final judgment. (Later Scriptures clearly tell us otherwise.) But we can confidently rest in the knowledge that the end will not come by another global flood.

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One more thing…

Ironically, the very fact that God has kept the promise that He made to Noah is used by the skeptic to scoff at the story of the Flood and, by extension, at the entire Bible and thus at God Himself. The skeptic’s logic goes something like this:

• I have never seen a global flood
• No one in living history has seen a global flood
• The very notion of a global flood is thus preposterous
• Ergo, the Great Flood of Noah never occurred and the Bible is bunk, along with the God it describes

Such is the warped logic of the fallen and faithless human heart. The same kind of thinking presumes that since Jesus has not yet returned, that He never will. (See II Peter 3:1-10.) Fortunately for all of us, God remains faithful, despite such nonsense.

Genesis 4-6

When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose.

Genesis 6:1-2

I highlight these verses not because I have a crystal clear explanation of them but because I do not. That is not to say that no explanations have been offered. Quite the contrary — theories abound. A tremendous amount of time and energy (and ink and web space) has been devoted to speculation as to what is meant by the “sons of God”. Here is a sampling:

• Fallen angels
• Extraterrestrial beings (i.e., space aliens)
• Homo Sapiens (descendants of Adam), in contrast to Neanderthal (or some such genetically compatible but otherwise unspiritual) “daughters of men”

I am not going to try to settle the matter here. Sorry about that. Instead I want to take the opportunity to recognize that there are some things in the Bible that are a bit obscure, that are hard to understand, or that are perhaps even well beyond explanation. What do we do with such things? Do we demand a full and clear explanation? In the absence of a “satisfactory” explanation (where “satisfactory” is defined by our own subjective sensibilities), do we reject the whole passage or even the whole Bible? What, truly, is our attitude toward the text? Are we trying to shape the text? Or are we allowing the text to shape us?

But, really, come on, man… What’s all this about the “sons of God” taking the “daughters of man” as wives? I don’t know. And I’m OK with that.

Genesis 1-3

Genesis, the book of beginnings, is utterly foundational to the rest of Scripture. In the opening verses we see that the eternal God is the Creator, the Source of everything, speaking the entire universe into existence. We see that God creates Man, male and female, in His image and gives them dominion over the earth. We see the Fall of Man and ongoing rebellion against God. We see God’s judgment, tempered by mercy and grace. We see the call of Abraham and the beginnings of God’s redemptive plan to bless the whole world through him, so we trace his descendants, particularly those who come to be known as the nation of Israel.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:1

Take a few minutes to really consider what that means. Think about the vastness of the universe. Try to count the stars, even just the ones you can see. Consider the intricacies of a flower. Look at your own fingerprints and wonder. This God of ours brought it all forth out of nothing. He just spoke the Word, and it all came to be.

If you accept the truth of Genesis 1:1, then nothing else in the Bible should be beyond belief. That is, the Creator gets to do what He wants with His creation, and nothing within creation is beyond Him. If He chooses to part the Red Sea, then who are we to say that such things can’t happen? If He can handle everything from quarks to galaxies and beyond, then He ought to be able to feed 5,000 folks with a few loaves and fishes. There is nothing “super” about the supernatural for God.

So meditate on that truth today and praise our awesome Creator Who upholds the universe by the word of His power. (Hebrews 1:3)

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One more thing…

I am sure you will have noticed that I have made no attempt to cover the full breadth of our reading today. I focused on a single verse and even then barely scratched the surface of it. Given our pace through the Scriptures this year, I expect that to be the norm, which goes to say that there will be plenty of room for you to comment on what sticks out to you. Notice what you notice, and tell the rest of us about it.